Hauptstadt Impressions – Berlin for tourists and locals
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2011/04/04

Two are better than One – Heinrich Heine Sculpture

This cheerful fella holds the fort, surrounded by the holy sites of the Humboldt University, the Gorki Theater, the New Guard House and the Palais am Festungsgraben.

Click pic to enlarge

Click pic to enlarge

The statue of the young Heinrich Heine (one of Germany's most significant poets), is, however, not as unique as you would think: The original statue was cast on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Heine's death (in 1956) and designed to be mounted behind the New Guard House and in front of the Gorki Theater, but the GDR regime didn't care much for the "unheroic-ish" Bronze and its boyish charms and banned it to the Weinbergspark, somewhere in Wedding (one of Berlin's districts).

Just in time for the 200th birthday anniversary in 1997 (the GDR was dead then ...), discussions flared up, as to install the memorial where it was meant to be in the first place. Now, the Wedding people didn't like the idea and dug their claws deep into the statue to keep it in place.

Unceremoniously practical, an identical second statue was cast and mounted where you can see it now.